Utilizing Wastes in Water Systems as Oil Reservoir Tracers

Abstract

A technique of utilizing waste as an interwell tracer. The waste includes pharmaceutical, personal care product (PPCP) waste or nanoplastic (NP) waste, or both. The system and method includes injecting an injection fluid including water and the waste at an injection well into a subterranean formation, producing produced fluid including water at a production well from the subterranean formation, measuring concentration of the waste in the produced fluid, and comparing the concentration of the waste in the produced fluid with the concentration of the waste in the injection fluid.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of utilizing waste as an interwell tracer, comprising:
 determining concentration of waste in injection fluid, wherein the injection fluid comprises water, and wherein the waste comprises pharmaceutical, personal care product (PPCP) waste or nanoplastic (NP) waste, or both;   injecting the injection fluid at an injection well into a subterranean formation;   producing produced fluid at a production well from the subterranean formation, wherein the produced fluid comprises water;   measuring concentration of the waste in the produced fluid; and   comparing the concentration of the waste in the produced fluid with the concentration of the waste in the injection fluid.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising determining via the comparing an existence of a subterranean path in the subterranean formation between the injection well and the production well. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the subterranean path comprises water channeling. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein injecting the injection fluid comprises injecting the injection fluid at the injection well for an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) operation. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein injecting the injection fluid comprises injecting the injection fluid for the EOR operation and for performing contemporaneously interwell tracing via the waste as an interwell tracer. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein injecting the injection fluid comprises injecting the injection fluid at the injection well for waterflooding the subterranean formation. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the waterflooding is performed contemporaneous with interwell tracing via the waste as an interwell tracer. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the injection fluid comprises polymer in addition to the water for polymer flooding, and wherein the polymer is not the waste. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the injection fluid comprises nanoparticles in addition to the water for nanofluid flooding, and wherein the nanoparticles are not the waste. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein determining the concentration of the waste in injection fluid comprises measuring the concentration of the waste in the injection fluid, and wherein the water in the injection fluid comprises seawater, groundwater, river water, or lake water, or any combinations thereof. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the waste comprises PPCP waste. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein determining the concentration of the PPCP waste in the injection fluid comprises measuring the concentration of the PPCP waste in the injection fluid utilizing ultraviolet-visible (UV-VIS) spectroscopy, pyrolysis mass spectrometry (Pyrolysis-MS), or field flow fractionation (FFF), or any combinations thereof. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein molecular structure of the PPCP waste is altered by contact with a mineral in the subterranean formation. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , comprising utilizing the PPCP waste as an interwell tracer comprising a mineralogy tracer. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the mineral comprise clay, manganese (IV), or iron (III), or any combinations thereof. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising adding the waste to the injection fluid, wherein determining the concentration of the waste comprises specifying an amount of the waste added to the injection fluid. 
     
     
         17 . A method of utilizing waste as an interwell tracer, comprising:
 measuring concentration of the waste in injection water, wherein the waste comprises pharmaceutical, personal care product (PPCP) or nanoplastic (NP), or both;   injecting the injection water into a subterranean formation at an injection well;   producing water from the subterranean formation at a production well;   measuring concentration of the waste in the water as produced; and   correlating the concentration of the waste in the water as produced with the concentration of the waste in the injection water.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , comprising confirming via the correlating an existence of a subterranean path in the subterranean formation between the injection well and the production well. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the waste comprises NP, and wherein the NP comprises polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene (PE), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or polyurethane, or any combinations thereof. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the waste comprises PPCP. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the PPCP comprises sulfamethoxazole, sulfamethazine, ofloxacin, norfloxacin, azithromycin, trimethoprim, ibuprofen, naproxen, diclofenac, salicylic acid, bezafibrate, gemfibrozil, clofibric acid, carbamazepine, diazepam, prim idone, caffeine, diethyltoluamide (DEET), lopam idol, propranolol, metoprolol, galazolide, tonalide, octocrylene, ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, 1H-benotriazole, atenolol, atrazine, benzoylecgonine, cetirizine, citalopram, clarithromycin, desethylatrazine, diuron, erythromycin, fluoxetine, gembifrozil, haloperidol, iohexol, iopam idol, isoproturon, loratadine, mecoprop, paracetamol, paraxanthine, roxithromycin, sotabol, tamoxifen, terbuthylazine, theobromine, theophylline, or tolytriazole, or any combinations thereof.